Chocolate Chip Zucchini Mini Muffins

A healthy recipe for spiced mini muffins full of grated zucchini and rich chocolate chips. With their tender texture & just 47 calories, they never last more than a day in our house!

My childhood church hosted a potluck brunch after their Sunday services during the summer months, and each week, a few different members of the congregation signed up to bring a dish. Those same people would slip out just after the sermon to set up the two long folding tables in the courtyard, arrange all of the food onto huge serving platters in the kitchen, and brew enough fresh coffee to serve an army.

Some members brought homemade recipes to share, whereas others stopped by the grocery store on their way. On our week, Mom tried to throw together a fruit salad as our offering, but with two young kids and their very busy sports and play-date schedules, we occasionally stopped by the best donut store in town to pick up a few dozen donut holes instead.

Each Sunday, my brother and I tried to dash out of the sanctuary as soon as the postlude duet with the piano and organ began to head straight for the buffet tables. Because Mom and Dad preferred to sit in the first two rows, we were never first in line to grab a plate—we had to {not so} patiently wait for the other members to greet the pastor and walk out of the building first!

Once we finally reached the brunch table, we usually skipped past the first half of the platters. As picky eaters, those options of deviled eggs, potato salad, coleslaw, mini spinach quiches, and macaroni salad rarely looked appealing… We much preferred the fresh watermelon wedges, sliced baguettes, glazed donut holes, and big bakery muffins instead!

Because certain members preferred to pick up a dozen or two of Costco’s jumbo muffins in assorted flavors, the ladies in charge of brunch cut those oversized treats into eighths to ensure they could serve the majority of the congregation. My brother and I always tried to sneak an extra piece or two onto our plates, especially the double chocolate ones!

When my family and I recently reminisced about those summer church brunches, I started craving chocolaty muffins, but knowing I still couldn’t be trusted around Costco’s jumbo sized ones…

I baked these Chocolate Chip Zucchini Mini Muffins! They’re full of rich chips, which completely satisfy my chocoholic sweet tooth, and with their small size, they’re already perfectly portioned, just like those jumbo muffins sliced into eighths. Even better, they contain absolutely no butter, refined flour or sugar—and they’re just 43 calories!

These healthy muffins begin with whole wheat flour. That’s right, just regular ol’ whole wheat flour! Gold Medal is my favorite brand for regular whole wheat flour because it’s inexpensive and ground more finely than other brands, so my baked goods turn out more tender and with a less “wheat-y” flavor.

Unlike traditional muffin recipes that include ½ cup of oil or more (yikes!!), these little gems only require 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Yes, that’s right! The rest of their tender texture comes from… Can you guess?… Greek yogurt! Greek yogurt is one of my favorite ingredients in healthier baking because it adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your mini muffins a protein boost too!

For the sweetener, you’ll use a combination of pure maple syrup and vanilla crème stevia. When it comes to the former, make sure you buy the good stuff! Avoid pancake syrups or sugar-free syrups; those contain corn syrup or artificial ingredients, which we’re avoiding in this clean eating recipe. The only ingredient on the label should be “pure maple syrup,” and it generally comes in thin glass bottles or squat plastic jugs. (I’ve also bought it online!)

As for the other, stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly as well, and it’s very concentrated. A little goes a long way—you only need ¾ teaspoon for these muffins! This is the kind that I buy because I love its warm vanilla flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertaste like with some other stevia products. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, as well as online. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine too!)

Now for the best parts… The mix-ins! Use freshly grated zucchini, but before you stir it into the batter, pat the zucchini dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture. That excess moisture would cause your muffins to collapse while cooling, rather than hold their tall domed shape, so don’t skip this step!

My favorite trick is to mix in mini chocolate chips because their smaller size ensures that every bite contains a morsel of chocolate. That’s exceptionally important for a chocoholic like me! (I use that trick in many of the recipes in my Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook too!) I absolutely love Ghirardelli’s mini chips because they taste so rich and they melt really well. Little pockets of chocolaty bliss!

These mini muffins are one of my all-time favorites! The cozy cinnamon, the fresh zucchini, the rich chocolate chips… They’re the perfect trio and absolutely irresistible! These muffins will keep for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter or coconut oil, egg whites and vanilla. Stir in the Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Mix in the maple syrup and stevia. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Gently fold in the zucchini and 3 tablespoons of mini chocolate chips.

Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, and gently press the remaining chocolate chips into the tops. Bake at 350°F for 13-15 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch. Cool in the muffin cups for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack.

If you prefer, an additional 6 tablespoons of pure maple syrup may be substituted for the vanilla crème stevia, and the milk should be reduced to 6 tablespoons to compensated for the added liquid.

Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.

Measure the zucchini before patting it dry. You must pat it dry to remove the excess moisture because that excess moisture will cause the muffins to collapse while cooling. To pat the zucchini dry, lay a double-thick layer of paper towels onto a cutting board, and arrange the freshly shredded zucchini on top. Place another double-thick layer of paper towels on the zucchini, and gently press down until the top towel turns wet.

Be VERY careful if using liners! Generously coat the liners with nonstick cooking spray before adding the muffin batter. This batter will stick to liners like superglue if they aren’t coated with cooking spray.

If you prefer, this recipe will yield 12 standard sized muffins. The baking temperature remains the same. Begin checking on them after about 15 minutes. The muffins will be done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops feel firm to the touch.

Comments

These look SO GOOD. I’ve been eating all the zucchini lately!! People underestimate the power of zucchini in baked goods, especially with chocolate 😉 But then again, chocolate makes everything better! 🙂

I’d recommend against using self-raising flour in my recipes Judy. Other UK readers have tried using them in my recipes, and they’ve reported that the texture doesn’t turn out right. (For cakes, cupcakes, and muffins, the texture is usually much denser than it should be!) If you can find regular whole wheat or wholemeal flour, that would be much better. I’m excited to hear what you think of the mini muffins!

Hi Ms. Amy!
I just wanted to say I love your website and your recipes. I read that you have a degree in organic chemistry. That’s so cool!!!!
I’m actually a freshman in college studying chemical engineering. I’ve taken high school chemistry, and am taking my first college chemistry class this fall. I am really excited!!!!?
Alec

Thanks for your kind words about my website and recipes Alec! I’m so excited for you and your first college chemistry class. I still remember my first gen-chem class at college… Our professor wrote a song about electrons and sang it to us while playing the guitar at the end of lecture one day! 🙂 Best of luck to you and your chemical engineering degree!

Hi Amy, I have made the Zucchini Choc chip, and the Blueberry, and they came out a little bit dry, still nice, but dry, I also put in about 30 grams more yogurt, as I bought a little tub, and didn’t want to waste it, and a little extra milk as I was having trouble stirring it. Would that have caused them to be drier?. Also what do you suggest is the best method of measuring flour or weighting it? Because even using your method i was coming up with 2 different results

I really appreciate your interest in my recipes Aleesha! Weighing flour is always much more accurate than using the spoon-and-level method. If you used that method, rather than weighing the flour, when you made these muffins, that’s what would’ve caused them to be dry. 🙂

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